Most things I buy on Amazon are still cheaper than at the Walgreens down the road, and I don't have to lug it up the stairs. I buy everything but food there, stuff like 40 lbs of cat litter make Prime worth it pretty quickly. And they have movies too.

Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

Lsherm:Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

That's a good explanation. Also, I'd like to add the shipping you are likely to PAY for from other vendors (ultimately paying approximately the same cost as the prime item) would most likely be standard 4-5 days shipping and not 2 day.

I doing my comparison shopping, and have been satisfied with most price deals I get. And I use the streaming service and kindle book borrowing all the time, too.

Free is free, it's just not 2-day. They subcontract it to Lasership and other 3rd party vendors who fark it up majorly. I had to take a morning off from work to get the package from Lasership's warehouse myself after waiting a week. FAIL.

Lsherm:Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

Get out of here with your reasonable explanations. I WANT TO BE OUTRAGED!

Lsherm:Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

NickelP:are they saying the same seller charged prime members more or just some others who didn't have prime products charged less? this seems silly if I am understanding right

They are saying that whether or not you were a Prime member, you could get the same product for the same "price+shipping" total. And they may actually be correct, but the two day guarantee doesn't apply to non-Prime items. As far as I can tell, that's the only real advantage. However, as I pointed out in too many words above - that may still be the lowest total you'll spend for an item regardless if you order online.

Lsherm:NickelP: are they saying the same seller charged prime members more or just some others who didn't have prime products charged less? this seems silly if I am understanding right

They are saying that whether or not you were a Prime member, you could get the same product for the same "price+shipping" total. And they may actually be correct, but the two day guarantee doesn't apply to non-Prime items. As far as I can tell, that's the only real advantage. However, as I pointed out in too many words above - that may still be the lowest total you'll spend for an item regardless if you order online.

well i think anyone would realize that is true for larger items. the greatthing with prime is I can run out of tooth picks or cooking twine and order a 1.99 item and get it in 2 days.

The shipping... well... it might vary from object to object but I find that the prime stuff is rarely more expensive than not, and in the few cases where it is, the price difference is still substantially less than 2 day shipping.

Lsherm:So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

I tried to explain this to my friend who hates Amazon because they hurt bookstores: they are not an online store. They are a market. They make money like any market does, arbitrage.

You can fight Amazon all you want, but you should never be afraid that once they price their brick and mortar competition out they'll raise prices - they simply can't. A rival website can go up quick. They'll have to match the consensus price or be within a hair factoring in shipping costs.

Lsherm:Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

This has been my experience as well. And the shipping is extremely reliable. I have no complaints. When I pre-order movies for my kids, they ship it so I actually receive it on the release date and if their price drops after I order it and it's cheaper on the shipping date, they refund me the difference. Not that it's ever a whole lot of money, but still nice.

What kind of annoys me is that cables and a lot of other cheap things have turned into add-on items that require a $25 order before you can get them with Prime. I can kind of understand, but it is still vaguely annoying when I need something small and cheap like Nano-SIM adapters.

Well, that's why you try not to buy from third party sellers, which from a lot of items I see don't even qualify for free two day shipping. Besides, more than a few things I have ordered under Amazon Prime shipping will show up in one day. One farking day! Free shipping! And even if the shipping cost is built into the price, I still find the Amazon items cost less than if I purchased it at a retail store and had to pay tax on it as well.

unlikely:Plus, just now on a by-part-number comparison, the fan, keyboard, and graphics card I just got are all cheaper with prime than they are without figuring in the craptastic shipping on NewEgg.

I have a feeling this lawsuit is going to die a quiet death in a back room somewhere.

I used to buy every computer item from NewEgg for years because their prices were so good, better than the local computer stores. Now Amazon has NewEgg beat on most prices. Can't remember when I last bought something from NewEgg.

I order all kinds of janitorial supplies for work through prime. Like 12 cases of hand soap per month that weigh 17 lbs each. And the soap costs the same as it does at Restaurant Depot . So well worth it for me.

Confabulat:This giant glass computer desk I'm typing on now required three people to bring it upstairs to my apartment.

Shipping on that alone would have been more than my Prime membership.

Ding!

Their sheer efficiency at fulfillment is what I like most about them and often receive items inside the 2 day limit. I've grudgingly crept back into Ebay land because I need some atv race and replacement parts as they're a goldmine for those and noticed they now take regular CC's plus shipping has improved so win/win for me.

bdub77:Lsherm: Lsherm: The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime.

In case anyone asks:

[img819.imageshack.us image 359x900]

It really ties the room together. Like a rug, but taller.

We have something similar we bought from IKEA for I think $15. Still works great.

/not saying you overpaid//i love accent lamp

I tried IKEA, they didn't have anything like that. I mean, maybe they had something similar, but it wasn't THAT LAMP, you know?

Actually, I think the lamp was overstock from Macy's or something like that. It showed up all at once everywhere and the price ran up and now it's coming back down. I doubt it's going to reach $15 just because it's 50" tall, which puts it on the high end of accent lamps that aren't post-based. And I was adamant about something that didn't have a post. It's a thing I have going back to when the first halogen lamps came out - everything was a goddamn tall farking stick with a light on the end of it.

Confabulat:Most things I buy on Amazon are still cheaper than at the Walgreens down the road, and I don't have to lug it up the stairs. I buy everything but food there, stuff like 40 lbs of cat litter make Prime worth it pretty quickly. And they have movies too.

Lsherm:NickelP: are they saying the same seller charged prime members more or just some others who didn't have prime products charged less? this seems silly if I am understanding right

They are saying that whether or not you were a Prime member, you could get the same product for the same "price+shipping" total. And they may actually be correct, but the two day guarantee doesn't apply to non-Prime items. As far as I can tell, that's the only real advantage. However, as I pointed out in too many words above - that may still be the lowest total you'll spend for an item regardless if you order online.

In my experience, there are some other businesses that have similar deals with major shippers. For instance if you order a part for a Can-Am quad/cycle or a Ski-Doo sled those are all delivered to the dealership in two days regularly, even if it has to come from Canada (often UPS has to send out a different truck to make sure these get delivered on-time), for no charge to the dealer (you pay freight if you request Next Day Air). You pay retail, get the item in 2-3 days and smile, there's no shipping charge.Also, if I order Honda/Kawasaki parts and they aren't in stock in the USA mostly they get to me in about 1.4 weeks. So they come from Japan on an airplane and it takes a bit to get through the warehouse in LA/SF then to the dealer who forwards them on to me. My invoice only has freight from the dealer to my location (ie: not from Japan to my location).

NickelP:Lsherm: NickelP: are they saying the same seller charged prime members more or just some others who didn't have prime products charged less? this seems silly if I am understanding right

They are saying that whether or not you were a Prime member, you could get the same product for the same "price+shipping" total. And they may actually be correct, but the two day guarantee doesn't apply to non-Prime items. As far as I can tell, that's the only real advantage. However, as I pointed out in too many words above - that may still be the lowest total you'll spend for an item regardless if you order online.

well i think anyone would realize that is true for larger items. the greatthing with prime is I can run out of tooth picks or cooking twine and order a 1.99 item and get it in 2 days.

I bought a 40" tv for the bedroom the other day. prime. free delivery in 2 days.Beat that with a stick.

FFS, other sites charge INSANE amounts of money for 2 day shipping and forget about next day.DOnt get me started about their order fulfillment. taking days to ship things, long after it would have arrived from amazon.

20-40 dollars more a year for prime? with all those free movies?sign me up

Lsherm:Stephens explained that customers who were not Prime members often received a lower costs for the product and the shipping."But together they would roughly equal the cost Amazon is charging Prime members for so-called free shipping," he said.

Well he's right - that's what they do. I know they do this, because for every product I purchase with Prime Amazon includes a link that says "other sellers may sell this product for less" and includes links to them. And they always come up within a few cents of the Prime price if you add cost+shipping.

But here's the thing, if I compare the price of a Prime item to another site that isn't Amazon, the cost without shipping is usually the same. So if I'm looking for a $60 router on Amazon Prime, any of the other 3rd party Amazon sellers might sell a combo cost+shipping that totals $60, but Best Buy or Wal Mart might charge $60+ shipping.

The last example of this I can think of was an accent lamp I ordered that was $102 on Amazon Prime. All of the Amazon 3rd party sellers came within cents of that including shipping. Anywhere else I looked for that lamp wouldn't deliver it for under $115 total.

So they are clearly gaming the system, but they might be gaming it to the lowest possible price anywhere. I'm curious to see if the case goes anywhere.

THISclose the thread.PLUS

Russ1642:Shipping is never 'free'. It's just already included in the asking price. It has ALWAYS been this way.

unlikely:Plus, just now on a by-part-number comparison, the fan, keyboard, and graphics card I just got are all cheaper with prime than they are without figuring in the craptastic shipping on NewEgg.

I have a feeling this lawsuit is going to die a quiet death in a back room somewhere.

I've had positive experiences with NewEgg. I haven't ordered from them recently though, and come to thing about it I did get a dead power supply from them. I got it replaced though, but I was stuck with shipping charges sending it back to CA./NewEgg fights DMCA though, so that's worth something

MrEricSir:The real ripoff with Prime is when you click "Prime only" in the search results. The hoodie you wanted to order comes up, but when you click it they only offer Prime on the extra extra small size.

I HATE HATE HATE that even if you filter by Prime only then try to sort by price, it's never sorted by just the prime price, it includes 3rd party prices with a ton of shipping. Amazon is still my go-to, but when I want the cheapest solution to a problem, prime-fast, with a good return policy, it becomes a lot harder than it should be. I understand why Amazon does it that way, because they don't want to piss off the 3rd parties.

How about this, Bezos? Another level of membership that gives me the ability to filter out your crappy sellers, and include price trends so I don't have to camelcamelcamel stuff. Also, I want trending data on buyback prices, especially for textbooks. I'd buy that for a dollar.

after searching for the best seller on amazon, i googled and it turns out that sears matches the price exactly ($34.08) after tax, with free shipping. i also found that if 'manure' is not in the title, its shiat.

if amazon was smart, and they are, they would undercut everyone on the top sellers in every category, which they do; however, if someone is looking for a very specific item - lets say a 4-foot ridiculous free-standing paper lantern lamp, for example - you may find it cheaper, in store, at your local kmart or dollar store.

skinink:And even if the shipping cost is built into the price, I still find the Amazon items cost less than if I purchased it at a retail store and had to pay tax on it as well.

Lately I find that whenever I shop retail, I go to three or four stores only to find that they carry all the same, cheap shiat. They just can't beat the selection, and most of them don't even try to target the high end of most products. If you want to actually buy quality, you almost have to shop online.

craigzy: ..if someone is looking for a very specific item - lets say a 4-foot ridiculous free-standing paper lantern lamp, for example - you may find it cheaper, in store, at your local kmart or dollar store.

Reading the article, I don't think the lady has a strong grasp on reality. If I'm reading things correctly, she's suggesting that Amazon is colluding with its third party vendors to set their prices artificially high to match Amazon's pricing so that people will think Prime is a valuable service to have.

First of all, Prime IS a valuable service to have if you use Amazon regularly, because it eliminates shipping fees from your purchases AND gives you a slew of other benefits. It's like a Costco membership -- you don't have to have one to shop in the store, but you need one if you want to get the best possible perks of the store.

Second, suggesting that Amazon is in any way colluding is ridiculous. Amazon's got a bad reputation for treating its third party suppliers with indifference and automation, but not for back-room dealing. The whole reason Amazon has third party sellers is so it can broaden the products it offers. Suppliers set their own prices and are supposed to follow the standard shipping pricing depending on the type of product being sold. Some of the shipping cost is meant to cover fulfillment and packaging costs that Amazon itself chooses to eat for Prime members or for Super Saver shipping.

The best way to think about Amazon is as a giant flea market where about half of the stalls are owned and run by Amazon and the rest are individual owner/operators paying Amazon rent to be there. They don't offer the same service, pricing or advantages as Amazon itself, but they're available to serve you if you really need them.